Saturday, October 4, 2008

I wonder why at times we feel we don't have enough time to do all that we want in a day! Off late, I am plagued with a need to find time for everything that I plan out. And most times its not working out. So I have decided not to plan too many things that I end up getting disappointed. I planned to have a day in between each part so that everybody gets a chance to read. Not sure if that's fine or not! Anyway that gave me the much needed time to work on my Spice your Life! The previous template was not loading properly So worked on it and also changed the template. Well it might look very similar to Cooking 4 all Seasons, but then I can't help it I guess! Since I have Chinnu's picture for profile in this blog, she wanted to know where Peddu's and her's is. So I said I will have Peddu's in Spice blog and she has her own blog anyway. At times I wonder if my whole family is only following blogs! Infact, Athamma was telling me that its been quite a while since I posted a recipe! Well I have a whole lot still waiting, let me get the melas out of the way!

Today's part is again featured on categories based on main ingredients. This edition covers both Vegetarian and the Non Vegetarian dishes!

Rajma has always been a tempting one for me. Many a times I tried to get the perfect one. And seeing the curry prepared by Anjali, makes me crave for it again!

Mythreyee makes one wonderful rajma curry. Let me not bore you with how much I love rajma curry, but from the beautiful picture taken by Myth, its obvious, I am going to try this.

Not knowing what to prepare, got Priti into deciding on this yummy biryani from a fellow blogger. And this led her to have a dilemma on choosing the side dish. With canned rajma on hand, she ended up cooking that, only to realize how yummy it is. Now she says she has stock of the canned ones!

Seems makes a yummy curry with these beans. Its been ages since I have had and her curry brings back memories on lingering on this. And this she says is her mom's recipe, so I am sure it must be great.

I have always loved rajma and seeing Skribles bright coloured rajma, I am tempted to try again. I have always looked out for the prefect one and all these lovely entries are going to be surely tried!

Another entry from Sweatha is the Rajma masala which looks very yum and ready to be devoured! Seeing this from a glossy magazine, prompts her more to get on with the job!

***********************************************************When Rajmas are done, can the Okras be far away! Check the exotic dishes that one can do with the Lady's Finger aka the Okras!

Now don't be misled by the word pachadi. I was first, only to look at that beautiful picture of Okra dancing, ok kind of floating in a gravy! Anu can't go wrong with pictures believe me, so this is one no wonder so pretty!

Deepthi makes a different combo with Okra in Soy sauce, I have never really made with soy sauce and I see that she has tweaked it to suit our taste. How lovely!

Meera makes a yummy curry with Okra. I have only had made a kurma and its completely different. This looks so delicious and sure is a different way to make. so head over her place to enjoy this lovely treat!

The universal problem occurred to Priti on what to cook. They luckily decided on bhindi and thought of this lovely shahi variety. Well I have never made a shahi of a okra. And this one surely tempts one!

Purva's love for bhindi finally finds an outlet in this form of a west meeting south fashion. Her hubby dislikes okra and it was her mission to make him get around this dish. So she devices this recipe and makes him surrender to this wonderful dish!

RC makes this lovely curry with bhindi. She says this is what she makes when she is hard pressed for time. But assures that its heavenly, it has to be especially if her mom makes it so often! Seeing her picture sure makes me want to dig in!

***********************************************************Now comes the tangy dishes, so get ready for an assault on your senses with these great looking tangy sauces!

Chitra sendhil, a non blogger sends in this lovely looking tomato chutney which is quite simple to prepare. I must appreciate her interest in sharing this dish with us and going to the extent of clicking pictures, I should suggest her to start her own blog soon!

Method of preparation:1. Grind all the items given in To Grind with little water and keep it aside.

2. Heat a thick bottomed pan or kadai with 2tsp of oil. When its hot, add the mustard. When it starts popping, add the rest of the tempering ingredients one by one and fry on sim flame. Finally add the onion and fry it till light brown.

3. Add the finely chopped tomatoes, salt, turmeric powder. Sim, cover and cook for 5 mins. When the tomatoes are mushy, add the ground mixture. Mix everything well on high flame. Add more oil if needed .Add required amount of water if the gravy is very thick.

4. Finally, add the garam masala powder and cook well for 3 mins.

5. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Note: Vegetables like carrot, beans,peas,potato can also be added and done. But it should be pressure cooked.

Serve hot with rotis .Tastes good with idli ,dosa too!!

Medhaa's all Sindi related posts are so interesting. It gives me a peek to their culture and they food was cooked and cherished. Its always so wonderful to experience through another person's view. And this awesome curry is one of their traditional ones!

Mythreyee comes out with a beautiful bowl of tomato mint kootu. Wow that bowl surely makes me hungry for it.

Sweatha comes with an adapted recipe made with tomatoes. Well by the sounds of it, it sounds simple and looks says its great with dosa and Roti.

Usha makes Pitla for a change as a combo for Poori. What a lovely plate that looks! Now Pooris have always been my favorite. And this lady talks about the same things as it happens at my home. All said and done, I should say the new combo that she has tried makes me want to try it next time we make poori.

Vedha's Inji Puli

This one from a non blogger who sends in her Inji Puli which goes well with Idli and ven pongal. I am sure the tangy taste of this side dish extends lot of flavour for these breakfast!

Method:In a Kadai, add some oil, First put mustard, urad dhal, Bengal gram and Asafetida.Then add chopped green chillies and Ginger, wait till it gets ready.Then add curry leaves. Add turmeric powder.Now pour the thick extract of tamarind to the kadaiThen add water.(to one part of thick extract u can add one to one and a half part water)Add salt to taste.When the mixture comes to a boil, allow it to boil for five minutes.Subsequently take a table spoon of chutney(fried gram) dhal powder and add water to it to make a paste.Then add the chutney dhal powder paste to the boiling Inji puli.Also add a little bit of Jaggery to the boiling mixture.Allow to boil for five minutes.

Now Inji puli is ready to serve.

We call it as pachi pulusu in telugu at our home.

It is delicious with idly, dosa and pongal.

Taste this and give your comments. Its hot and spicy. Yummy!!!

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Now you need variety right, so they come! Spinach, Peppers and Soya they are!

Though Palak Paneer is something that's common at my place, I have never attempted with aloo. Seeing Manisha make this, only adds to my interest to get my hands on this.

When I landed in Rajani's blog, the first expression I had was, wow!. Not only her pictures are breathtaking, her posts are engaging. Lotus seeds are something I haven't seen, but her pictures are for sure tempts you to core!

Dal dishes are always nice and added with palak, it makes it more healthy. So Sangeeth's friend makes this for them and she was happy it came out as her mom's.

Illatharasi rules her readers mind by making exciting dishes, which they end asking for and being so kind blogs especially for them. This beautiful sound curry is with Bell Peppers.

Nithu makes this exciting looking dish with Bell Peppers stuffed. And not just that she serves with parottas. Can't really believe that this is the first time she was making it!

Sireesha comes out with a Curry made with Capsicum in Coconut base. Now anything in coconut base is great to have with chapatis, so I am even capsicum would've suited well!

Divz makes this different combo of soy beans with snake gourd! I haven't really tried much with soya beans but this combo sure sounds good enough to try a new dish

Sunshinemom has a really tough nut to crackle. Imagine being a Vegan with two Vegetarians and a non -veg around. You end up tackling difficult choices satisfying all. So making a pasanda with soya, was the best thing to happen. And what a lovely dish it comes to the party!

Its really been ages since I had soy meal. I remember eating them as a chile, when amma used to sneak them into puloas. But reading Lavi's post on the soy kaima, makes me wonder that it might be really nice if I try to make it again.

***********************************************************Not sated with the rest, more there for you!

I was really glad Apu sent in an entry. For that got me knowing her beautiful blog. You should especially take a look at her daring bakers creations..Simply lovely! And she recreates the magic it held for her during her college days! I sure can imagine that!

Divya Kudua comes up with an authentic Mangalore-South Kanara curry called the Koddel. Now horse gram is something that famous as a rustic one in Andhra, imagine this being famous all over the south! Well its only great that Divya's husband loves it too, all the more reason for her to come with different varieties.

Karuna makes a Rakhi special as her brother was at home. So for an indulging lunch, she made dal makhani and mutter paneer. Well these for sure makes any occasion very special. And am sure her brother was very happy with the special dishes!

This is shifa's son's fav. Well if a kid can eat this, it sure must be great. So next time I have a doubt what to cook for my kid, then this is it!

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Eggs always come to rescue when you want to prepare a quick non veg meal. So these entries are a sure help at times of need!

Cinnamon has always tempted me with her beautiful pictures. And this curry is no less. Check out her beautiful eggs resting so well in a tomato gravy. I am always on a look out of a nice egg curry and this seems so perfect!

Dessert Pro is pro in many things you know! She sends this traditional kerala dish egg curry with coconut milk and her picture just comes alive!

Shifa makes this yummy looking Egg curry when she has the pressing question of what to cook! Well I have always looked for different versions for cooking egg and this one sure fits the bill!

Knowing Sra so well, I wasn't surprised in her making something like this for the mela. There is never a dull moment when you are in her company and imagine she planning to make a dish like this. I always knew she loved eggs, but to make an Omelette curry? Well hop on and enjoy what Sra has to dish out!

***********************************************************I can only say that each and every entry with chicken, is a class of its own!

Curry leaves are very important to Indian Cuisine. And I have made rice, chutney and podi with these wonder leaves. But when I got a curry from Cinnamon and that too a chicken swamped with these, its surely on my do to list!

Ok I have to say I got to put this as an explanation of the event's theme. Gaurav rambles on the definition of a korma. And I eagerly scoured down to read what he says. Well its nice to know how different korma is prepared and his murg korma is more than tempting!

Well I know that listening and cooking could produce such yummy dishes, I would've forever had songs running. But Gaurav proves that no matter which dish you are preparing its bound to turn out great. So is Talli Murgh Masaledar!

Illatharasi makes this yummy chettinad chicken curry after being inspired by another blogger. Chettinad cuisine is so very flavoured and spicy that you will really want to go for a second serve and Illatharasi's picture looks fittingly rich!

Indy gets nostalgic thinking about college days and the joint she used to frequent. Those dabbas are always a place to remember and the food served are something that always remains fresh. The Butter Chicken is something from the days ago!

Judy's Chicken Curry

Judy, a non blogger, sends in her recipe for Chicken Curry. She also clicks a picture and sends in. Well it looks great, so I am sure she should start a blog of her own soon!

Step 1Heat a tawa and pour some oil , fry the onion till it becomes soft (not brown) turn off the heat and add the coconut and stir for sometime.Blend these along with coriander powder , half a spoon of pepper and sanuf to a nice paste.

Step 2

Take a pressure cooker add oil(as needed), add the seasoning Ingredients and then add the grinded paste.Stir for sometime until the raw smell goes off.Add the tomato,turmeric powder ,chilli powder and the meat and ofcourse salt :) .Add enough water for the meat to cook.

Garnish with curry leaves and cilantro .A good combination for any Indian breakfast and also with Rice.Note: (Since we grind the onion and do in pressure cooker the cooking time is very less and an easier dish)

Ok, don't be misled by the term fry in the title. I was, but seeing the picture assured that it was indeed a gravy and one that looks so bright and red. Kamala, I am sure this was a great hit too!

As a newly wedded couple, she was hesitant to say no to her sil, who is a great cook. After a heavy lunch its again dinner time, and this time Lubna was treated to another yummy servings of this Chicken Korma, which she has been preparing ever since!

Maheswari makes a delicious looking chicken all the way from punjab and its the yummy punjabi chicken masala. Now who can resist this creamy dish. She got this from her friend, so we should thank her too for getting this to us.

Rina always comes outs with great looking non veg dishes. And this one is no less. The colour and everything else calls out. This is surely something I am planning to cook next. Thanks rina for a lovely curry!

For Sudeshna, celebrations always meant cooking chicken. And this occasion was nothing less. For its not everyday we get to have the 61st birthday of India and having everybody at home was an addition bless for her to prepare an elaborate meal! That dish sure looks very festive!

Usha Rao explains the magically meaning behind Shorva. Until now I didn't know there was even a word such that! Makes me wonder how much more I got to learn..well anyway hop on to her place to learn more about what a shorva is and enjoy her lovely picture.

Yasmeen's pictures really comes out to tempt you! She makes a great healthy chicken dish with garlic and herbs. Whatever, the picture was enough to droll me for a while. I was sure I have to bookmark it.

***********************************************************All with Lamb or Mutton, what more you need to become more of a glutton!

Lubna's Taar Khorma looks straight from a glossy magazine. The specialty is, this is from Kashmir. and its prefect for winter season. I can imagine how this might soothe you while its so chill outside.

Mona always comes out with classic dishes and her pictures are always mouth watering pretty! This is no less, believe me. But don't think you can say the name in one shot ok, its quite a mouthful! But this delicious Meatballs in hot and sour gravy is a sure delight to behold.

Pallavi @ All Thingz Yummy makes a gongura mutton with the her own produce! gongura is very famous in Andhra and combining it with Mutton is the next best thing that could happen is what I heard. so imagine preparing it with plants grown in your backyard!

Suparna's blog was a new one that I got to know through this mela. I must say she has some interesting one and this curry she sends is no less.

Another winning picture from Yasmeen is her Tangy Tomato Lamb. That bowl really gives anybody a royal appetite.

***********************************************************This opens an ocean of choices!

Keralites are very fond of fish curry. This I saw personally during my trip down there. They make it almost everyday and again order the same while eating it out. Well its no wonder, if its looking as tempting as Ann's. And she adds zing to it by including chembu in it!

Divz prepares a fish molee and wonders on the origin of the name. Well what's in a name, when the dish looks yummy enough to be devoured right off! Anyway read on her post to know more about what others thought of this!

Now Sanhita's curry is interesting! Its bright Orange and yea she calls it orange fish curry too. I find it interesting that she recommends using stone grinder to grind the masala. That really brought back many memories!

Suma Rajesh makes this interesting fish curry that tastes great with cooked tapioca and rice. I know fish curry tastes great next day but she even talks about cooking in clay pot. Well nothing like old traditions right!

Jaya is cooking shrimp and while she is at that, she pays a beautiful tribute to the fishermen who's hard work is what that gets us such lovely seafood. I am sure the fisher folks would love to hear what jaya has to say about them!

Now this gets me quite happy! Priti's first non veg dish and it comes to curry mela! Her whole family helps her out as these are sent by her sister and bil!..how wonderful!

Adding coconut to any gravy gives it an unique taste and flavour and Suma Rajesh brings that about by adding it to shrimps and making a malai curry with that. She says she is very fond of this curry, no wonder it does look very tempting!

***********************************************************Hope you all will have fun reading through this edition as I had putting them together.

Valli, I was wondering when yegg and naan-vej would finally feature in your round-up, wondered if you were out of town too! Thanks for this mega hard work - so many recipes and you've taken the trouble to give the personal touch to each and every entry, that's very nice of you.